


Okay

by Servena



Series: As Queer as Easy Company [1]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Acceptance, Awkwardness, Coming Out, Episode: s01e06 Bastogne, Friendship, Gen, Homosexuality, M/M, Male Homosexuality, Talk about women
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-08-29 04:09:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16736826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Servena/pseuds/Servena
Summary: “So, what kind o’ woman would ya like to marry?” (Bill and Babe talk about women – or at least one of them is.)





	Okay

“-be? Babe!” The voice of Bill Guarnere cut right through the thoughts in his head.

“Huh?” he said and glanced up from the tin of food in his hands (if it could be called food, but at least the cook had promised them it was edible, though he didn’t want to say what was in it) only to look straight into Bill’s expectant face.

There was a moment of awkward silence, then Bill said: “You ain’t been listening to a word I been saying, no?”

If there had actually been any feeling left in his face, Babe was sure that it would now be hot with embarrassment. “Sorry”, he said sheepishly. “What were you saying?”

Bill shook his head. “Really, Babe, ya hurt my feelings. Here I was, bearing my heart to you, talking ‘bout the kind of woman I’d like to marry - you know, anything to take my mind of that grub we’re eating.”

“Uh-huh.” Babe risked another glance at his food, and then shoved a spoonful of it into his mouth before he could further dwell on its origins.

“So what about you?” Bill asked.

Babe looked up again. “What?”

“Jesus, Babe, stay with me here, will ya?” Bill said exasperated. “What kind o’ woman would ya like to marry?”

There was a feeling like a ball of lead sinking into his stomach. “I don’t know” he said slowly and then hastily shoved another spoonful of food into his mouth.

But Bill was enjoying this topic far too much to let it go so easily. “Come on, you never talk about this stuff. You got a girl waitin’ for you over there?”

Babe shook his head, chewing far longer than was either necessary or enjoyable.

“Alright, so what are you looking for? Let’s start with somethin’ easy, let’s start with hair color. You got a preference there?”

Babe swallowed heavily. “Dark – dark hair is good.”

“Dark hair, uhu. Now myself, I’m more of a blonde kinda guy, blonde with blue eyes does it for me, but I mean, I ain’t dogmatic about that. I could like a brunette, or maybe a redhead, and you know what they say about them…”

Babe nodded vaguely while shoveling more food into him. Everything was so cold that he couldn’t really taste a thing, which was probably a blessing.

“Okay, so dark-haired. Maybe someone exotic? But you’re in the wrong kinda war for that.” Babe didn’t even get the chance to get a word in on that, not that he’d knew what that’d be, because Bill continued:  “So what about figure? You know, lots o’ guys like the small ones, you now, small and slim, but me, I’d prefer a big woman, you know, someone with curves and some strength to her.”

Babe nodded along, which was easy enough, but sooner than he’d like the attention was back on him. “So, what d’you say?”

“I don’t know”, he mumbled, stumbling over his own words, “guess I never really thought about that.”

“Guess you never really thought about that?” Bill repeated with a healthy dose of skepticism.

“Uh-huh.” Babe turned back to his food, but the spoon scraped over the barren bottom of the tin.

He looked back up when Bill sighed loudly. “Babe. It’s okay.” There was a sudden seriousness to the expression on his face that cut right to Babe’s core. “It’s okay.”

When Babe found his voice again, it was small and shaky. “Is it?”

Bill sighed again. “Well, ‘t least it is with me.”

For a moment the air between them was only filled by the clouds their breaths became in the cold.

Then Babe asked: “How long have you known?”

Bill shrugged and rubbed his hands together for warmth. “Had a feeling for a while. Wasn’t sure I wasn’t just imaginin’ things.”

Babe nodded quietly.

“Didn’t tell anybody, in case you’re worryin’. Though I think nobody’d give a shit right now when every moment a kraut could blow their socks off.” Bill’s laughter was short and carried an edge.

“So”, he then said, leaning forward, “you wanna tell me about the Doc?”

At Babe’s wide eyes he grinned widely. “’Cause you been looking at him like he’s the best thing since sliced bread. There somethin’ goin’ on? Come on, you can tell Uncle Bill.”

Babe couldn’t help it, he had to laugh at that, if only to release some of the feelings of mortification. “No. Maybe. I don’t know.”

“Jesus, Babe, you don’t care much for makin’ it easy on yourself, do you? Alright, listen up, ‘cause I’m gonna share some wisdom with ya…”

The snow was falling again, muffling their conversation to the ears of their fellow soldiers nearby. And if Babe looked up from time to time to glance over to a certain medic smoking his cigarette alone a few meters away, no one would know. Well, almost no one.


End file.
